Systems Methodology for the Management Sciences

Coatemporary Systells Thinking

Series Edilor: Robert L. Flood University of Hull Hull . United Kingdom

LIBERATING SYSTEMS THEORY Robert L. Flood

OPERATIONAL RESEARCH AND SYSTEMS: The Systemic Nature of Operational Research Paul Keys

SYSTEMS METHODOLOGY FOR THE MANAGEMENT SCIENCES Michael C. Jackson

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Systems Methodology for the Management Sciences

Michael C. Jackson University of Hull Hull, United Kingdom

SPRINGER SCIENCE+BUSINESS MEDIA, LLC

LIbrary of Congress CatalogIng-In-PublIcatIon Data

Jackson. Michael C .• 1951-Systems methodology for the management sCiences I Michael C.

Jackson. p. cm. -- (Contemporary systems thinking>

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. System analysis. 2. Management science. II. Series. HD38.J23 1991 658.4'032--dc20

10987654

ISBN 978-1-4899-2634-0

1. Title,

© 1991 Springer Science+Business Media New York Originally published by Plenum Press, New York in 1991 Softcover reprint of the hardcover I st edition 1991

All rights reserved

91-34237 CIP

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher

ISBN 978-1-4899-2634-0 ISBN 978-1-4899-2632-6 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4899-2632-6

Series Preface

Contemporary Systems Thinking is a series of texts, each of which deals comparatively and/ or critically with different aspects of holistic thinking at the frontiers of the discipline. Traditionally, writings by systems think­ers have been concerned with single theme propositions such as general systems theory, cybernetics, operations research, system dynamics, soft systems methodology, and many others. Recently there have been at­tempts to fulfill a different, yet equally important, role by comparative analyses of viewpoints and approaches, each addressing disparate areas of study such as modeling and simulation, measurement, management, "problem-solving" methods, international relations, social theory, and last, but not exhaustively or least, philosophy. In a recent book these were drawn together within a multiform framework as part of an eclectic dis­cussion-a nearly impossible task as I discovered (see Dealing with Com­plexity: An Introduction to the Theory and Application of Systems Science by R. L. Flood and E. R. Carson). Nevertheless, bringing many sources to­gether led to several achievements, among which was showing a great diversity of approaches, ideas, and application areas that systems thinking contributes to (although often with difficulties remaining unresolved). More important, however, while working on that manuscript I became aware of the need for and potential value in a series of books, each focusing in detail on the study areas mentioned above. While modeling and simula­tion are served well in the scientific literature, this is not the case for systems thinking in management, "problem-solving" methods, social theory, or philosophy, to name a handful. Each book in this series will make a contribution by concentrating on one of these topics. Each one will offer a further interest beyond other available books because of the in­evitable tensions that authors will have to deal with, between contrasting approaches that have all too often met in nonreflective adversarial mode as specialist takes on specialist. There can be no genuine victors emerging from that style of intellectual debate.

Yet an alternative critical and comparative study poses an interesting difficulty for authors in this series. Each author must consider how he or

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vi Series Preface

she can best deal with contrasting approaches. There are two obvious options: first, by adopting a monolithic isolationist position that makes no real distinction between appro~ches which stand apart according to their own principles; second, by taking the bold step of adopting a complemen­tarist approach that operates at a meta-level and accepts fundamentally that different rationalities exist, each with its own theoretical and metho­dological legitimacies and limitations. I do not intend to dictate an iso­lationist or a complementarist position to the authors, but the reader's awareness of this issue sets up an extremely interesting tension that can be followed throughout the series.

ROBERT L. FLOOD

Preface

Systems thinking has had a major impact on the management sciences and other disciplines. To give only a few examples, general system theory influenced organization theory, while the systems approach was the often­stated theoretical justification behind practical methodologies such as operational research. Outside of the management sphere, sociologists were immensely influenced by general system theory and cybernetics through the work of Parsons; and French structuralists such as Levi-Strauss and Piaget acknowledged their debt to von Bertalanffy and Wiener. More recently, however, and especially in the management sciences, the impact of systems thinking has seemed to be on the wane. Operational research abandoned even the pretense of offering a systems approach and con­cerned itself instead with the piecemeal engineering of tactical problems. In organization theory, the assault upon functionalism has been read by many as an attack on the systems idea itself. This situation has not been helped by the splintering of the systems movement into warring factions­championing soft systems thinking against hard systems thinking, cyber­netics against soft systems thinking, and so forth-as systems thinking succumbed in the 1980s to the paradigmatic disputes that are a common feature of social sciences such as sociology.

The aim of this book is directly related to the current state of systems thinking as an approach within the management sciences. Its purpose is no less than to reconstitute systems thinking as a unified approach to problem management, so that it can again occupy a role at the leading edge in the development of the management sciences. This is done, first, by showing the complementary role that the various systems methodologies can play in the overall task of managerial decision making and problem manage­ment (thus it can be recognized that diversity is a sign of strength in the systems movement and not an indication of weakness); and second, by demonstrating the power of systems thinking as a source of theoretical support and practical guidance in the management sciences-support that has been reinforced rather than threatened by the establishment of alter-

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native systems approaches such as soft systems thinking, organizational cybernetics, and critical systems thinking.

It is a sign of the growing maturity of the systems movement, and its readiness to recapture a hegemonic role with respect to the management sciences, that it is now producing a literature that seeks to develop the systems approach as a whole, rather than isolated texts advocating one version of systems thinking against others. This book should be seen as a contribution to that literature. The reader who is impressed by the notion of an integrated set of systems methodologies providing a lead to the management sciences should also consult:

Jackson, M. c., and Keys, P., 1987, New Directions in Management Science, Gower, New York (reprinted 1989).

Flood, R. L., and Carson, E. R, 1988, Dealing with Complexity: An Introduction to the Theory and Application of Systems Science, Plenum, New York.

Flood, R. L., 1990, Liberating Systems Theory, Plenum, New York. Flood, R. L., and Jackson, M. c., 1991, Creative Problem Solving: Total Systems

Intervention, John Wiley, Chichester.

The author is grateful to the follOwing publishers for their permission to reproduce previously published material:

Butterworth and Co. (Publishers) Ltd., for parts of "Systems Strategies for In­formation Management in Organizations Which Are Not Machines" ijackson, 1987a), used in Chapter 2.

Basil Blackwell, for parts of "An Appreciation of Beer's 'Viable System' View­point" ijackson, 1988a), used in Chapter 5.

John Wiley, for parts of Creative Problem Solving: Total Systems Intervention (Flood and Jackson, 1991a), used in Chapter 11.

Department of Systems, University of Lancaster, for parts of "The Nature of Soft Systems Thinking: The Work of Churchman, Ackoff and Checkland" ijack­son, 1982), used in Chapter 6 in the sections "Soft Systems Thinking and Its Critics" and" Analysis and Assessment."

Pergamon Press, for parts of "The Itinerary of a Critical Approach ... " ijackson, 1985a), used in Chapter 7 in the section "Emancipatory Systems Thinking"; parts of "Some Methodologies for Community OR" ijackson, 1988b), used in Chapter 9; and parts of "Present Positions and Future Prospects in Manage­ment Science" ijackson, 1987b), used in Chapter 10.

Macmillan Press Ltd., for parts of "Beyond a System of Systems Methodologies" ijackson, 1990a), used in Chapter 7 in the section "Critical Systems Thinking."

Then there are some essential acknowledgments. I would like to thank Peter Checkland for putting the systems idea into my mind and letting the world convince another skeptic of its usefulness. lowe a debt to Paul Keys for an intellectual partnership over many years in the Department of Management Systems and Sciences. More recently, Bob Flood's energy,

Preface ix

commitment, and intellect have contributed much to me and to the de­velopment of systems thinking (through the journal Systems Practice, for example). I thank him, too, for allowing me to use a section of our book Creative Problem Solving: Total Systems Intervention in Chapter 11 of this volume. I am grateful to the students who worked on the projects reported in Chapters 8 and 9; they are B. O. Alabi, M. Ashton, C. E. Chung, A. Gregory, J. K. K. Ho, N. Jabari, F. Lajumoke, and S. Medjedoub. David Schecter and John Mingers kindly read and commented on the manuscript. Word processing was done carefully and patiently by Linda Saddington and Liz Hutty. My wife Pauline and sons Christopher and Richard have tried to maintain some humanity in me during the writing of the book.

I dedicate the volume to my parents, Anna and Christopher Jackson, who molded some unpromising material-their three adopted children­into a musician, a nurse, and an academic; and also to my wife's mother, the late Barbara Windas (nee Quick).

Contents

PART I. OVERVIEWS

1. The Structure of the Argument. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2. Theoretical Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 11

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 11 Knowledge and Interest and Social Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 12 Sociological Paradigms. .. .. . . .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. . ... 17 Metaphors of Organization. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 23 A System of Systems Methodologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 27 Modernism versus Postmodernism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 32 Conclusion. .. . . . ... .. .. ... . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. ... . ..... .. .. 37

PART II. METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES

3. Organizations as Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 41

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 41 Barnard's Systems Thinking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 42 Sociological Systems Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 44 General System Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 48 Contingency Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 51

Introduction to Contingency Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 51 The Goal Subsystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 54 The Human Subsystem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 54 The Technical Subsystem .................................. 55 Size ..................................................... 56 Environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 56 The Managerial Subsystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 58 Summary of Contingency Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 58

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Sociotechnical Systems Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 59 Introduction to Sociotechnical Systems Theory .. . . . . . . . . . . .. 59 The Early Stages of Sociotechnical Systems Thinking. . . . . . . .. 60 The Coal Mining Studies. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. . .. .. . .. 62 Later Developments in Sociotechnical Systems Thinking. ..... 63

Strengths and Weaknesses of Organizations as Systems.. .. .. ... 67 Analysis and Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 70

4. Hard Systems Thinking. .. .. . .. . . . . .. . . . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .... 73

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 73 Systems Engineering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 Systems Analysis ....................................... , .. .. 75 Operational Research. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 77 Hard Systems Thinking and Its Critics ........................ 78 The Criticisms in Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 82 Analysis and Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 85

5. Organizational Cybernetics ................................ " 91

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 91 History..................................................... 92 Cybernetic Building Blocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 94

The Black Box Technique. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 95 Negative Feedback....................................... 97 Variety Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 99

Management Cybernetics and Organizational Cybernetics. . . . . .. 102 ManagementCybernetics ................................. 102 Organizational Cybernetics .............................. " 103

Beer's VSM ................................................. 104 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 104 The VSM ................................................ 105 Using the VSM for Diagnosis and Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 112

Strengths and Weaknesses of Organizational Cybernetics ........ 117 Analysis and Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 123

6. Soft Systems Thinking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 133

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 133 Churchman's Social Systems Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 136 Mason and Mitroff's Strategic Assumption Surfacing

and Testing (SAST) ........................................ 141

Contents xiii

Ackoff's Social Systems Sciences (S3) ........................... 145 Checkland's Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) .................. 150 Soft Systems Thinking and Its Critics .......................... 160 Analysis and Assessment ..................................... 167

7. Critical Systems Thinking ................................... 183

Introduction ................................................. 183 The Main Features of Critical Systems Thinking ................ 184 Emancipatory Systems Thinking .............................. 187

Critical Systems Heuristics ................................. 187 Other Contributions ....................................... 194

Critical Systems Thinking .................................... 196 Historical Origins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 Current Overview ........................................ 204

Analysis and Assessment ..................................... 209

PART III. PRACTICAL APPUCA TIONS

8. Illustrative Case Studies ..................................... 215

Introduction ................................................. 215 Organizations as Systems-SheIl's New Philosophy of

Management .............................................. 215 Hard Systems Thinking-Improving Blood Availability and

Utilization ................................................ 220 Organizational Cybernetics-Humberside Window Systems Ltd .. 222 Soft Systems Thinking-Thornton Printing Company ............ 226 Critical Systems Thinking-West Newton Council for Voluntary

Service ................................................... 231 Conclusion .................................................. 235

9. Community Operational Research ............................ 237

Introduction ................................................. 237 Background ................................................. 237 The Purposes of COR ........................................ 239 A Theory to Guide COR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 244 COR Practice ................................................ 246 Conclusion .................................................. 249

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PART IV. FUTURE PROSPECTS

10. An Argument for Complementarism ........................ 253

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 253 Traditional and Modem Management Science. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 253 Developmental Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 256

Isolationism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 257 Imperialism ............................................. 259 Pragmatism ............................................. 261 Complementarism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 262

Crisis or Increasing Competence? ............................ 264 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 269

11. Creative Problem Solving: Total Systems Intervention. . . . . . .. 271

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 271 The Philosophy and Principles of TSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 272 The Three Phases of TS! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 273

Creativity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 273 Choice .................................................. 274 Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 275

Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 276

12. Conclusion................................................ 277

References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 281

Index ......................................................... 293